This chapter examines the clash between Rastafarian diasporic dreams and African nation-state realities. Even as the Rastafarian notion of diaspora transcended the state, Rastas were at the mercy of ...
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This chapter examines the clash between Rastafarian diasporic dreams and African nation-state realities. Even as the Rastafarian notion of diaspora transcended the state, Rastas were at the mercy of the Tanzanian state apparatus. The state granted them official “right of entry” in 1985,but it was not codified into law, and this made for a less than smooth process. The fissures that came to the fore turned on the legal, economic, cultural, and religious realities of repatriation. Notwithstanding these difficulties, Rastafarians and Tanzanian state officials continued to trod diaspora and to make claims about the relationship between race and citizenship.Less

Diasporic Dreams, African Nation-State Realities

Monique A. Bedasse

Published in print: 2017-10-09

This chapter examines the clash between Rastafarian diasporic dreams and African nation-state realities. Even as the Rastafarian notion of diaspora transcended the state, Rastas were at the mercy of the Tanzanian state apparatus. The state granted them official “right of entry” in 1985,but it was not codified into law, and this made for a less than smooth process. The fissures that came to the fore turned on the legal, economic, cultural, and religious realities of repatriation. Notwithstanding these difficulties, Rastafarians and Tanzanian state officials continued to trod diaspora and to make claims about the relationship between race and citizenship.